Coal Stove on a House Boat

I don't know. I've heard all about these "rip-tides, and under-tows. you never know, some night while sleeping, you might end up in the red sea. (Drat, top of the page ...again.)

JerseyCoal wrote:Thank you for all of your helpful and insightful comments.

It appears to me that my yacht is not a lot like the Titanic; it is EXACTLY like the Titanic! So much for truly watertight compartments. Of course, this craft is intended for sheltered waters and will never see the open sea, let alone an iceberg. However, I have spent enough time on the water to know that anything can happen, and fast.

When I get the solar panel and battery installed, I could hook up an automatic pump or two, and supplement with a manual pump.

As for spending weeks on a life raft, I don't expect to ever be beyond sight of land and will probably be within spitting distance.

No one expects it, but that's exactly where most of the small boat problems, damage, and sinking's occur.

Calm, inland waters can get very rough and choppy with waves pushed up by wind in shallower water. That type of wave action makes the hull slap and pound. It stresses the hull more so than long ocean swells in deeper waters. It gets especially bad with flat-bottomed boats that can't "cut through" waves, but have to pound into them.

Even a moderate wake from a big cabin cruiser, or fishing boat, can push a wake wave big enough to bury your bow when they are going at inland water way speed limits. Make sure you provide for having everything on board secured well !!!

Paul

Sheltered inland waters after a storm.

Did I miss the name of this fine hotel of the seas?

Smoker858 wrote:Did I miss the name of this fine hotel of the seas?

"Smokeless on the Water"? or "Coal Onboard" perhaps? "Coaled Again"?

How dare you fellows destroy my dreams with "facts"!

Actually, all of your comments regarding safety seem to be well reasoned. Perhaps I should just set the thing up on blocks and live in it as if it were an RV.

The best laid schemes of mice and men....

No, you just have to take extra precaution when you know a storm is coming. Maybe spend that night on shore.

Indeed JC. A good radio got me & my kinda brother from Maine to Fla. as far as weather & what not was concerned. Safe sailing is the factor, not the dream dasher. Holy crap, that rhymed! KINDA ! Permission to come aboard skipper

There's no reason you can't live on the water.

But you should learn as much as you can about it before you do. And you may have to scale back your ability to travel wherever and whenever in that type craft with a small motor.

Things of life on the water that seem so great to "landlubbers" are often nothing like the reality of living on the water. Been there many times, both inland waterways, and deep ocean. Had some real exciting times in bad weather. Such as surfing down 15 -20 foot waves 15 miles off Boston in a storm in a two masted, 7 ton "surf board" and finding out that when your running before a strong sea and being pushed by the waves , golly gee, the rudder doesn't work !!!

Next day's excitement was being stuck right under the middle of several hours worth of thunder cells with a 55 foot tall "lightning rod" and seeing bolts of lighting striking the ground on either side of us as we passed through the Cape Cod Canal.

One storm, a seconds loss of attention and the ship would broach. The other storm the waters were blown flat by the strong winds in a narrow body of water, but we could do nothing about the lightening except pray and trail a steel cable off the back stay and hope it would ground out any strikes without killing us because we had to stay on deck during all of it.

Both storms caught us out in the open before we could get to shelter. Not being able to deal with the surprises that come up on the water is what sinks most ships and kills most people. Being prepared, doing your home work, don't skimp on safety and the HP to get you to safety, and planning ahead, will all make it possible for you to realize your dream.

Study, learn, plan, equip, then launch.

Paul

Two solar panels on the roof.
200 watts; 23 volts.
Installation required drilling 16 holes in my beautiful rubber roof. The first few were emotionally challenging.
Lots of rubbery goop should keep the water out.
Now I will have bright lights when I brush the long, flowing locks cascading down to my shoulders! (Think Fabio)

With the chimneys so close, I will have to clean the panels frequently during the heating season.

Well done JC

Holes in a new roof! How dare you.

I am not familiar with solar panels but I assume the have a protective coating and hopefully it is not reactive with the coal emissions. I have seen what coal exhaust can do to a tin roof over time.

I also picked out a song for you to listen to while spending long summer days floating and drinking on the bay.

Cool song. He can listen to it, while sailing to Margaritaville.
Nice job with the panels. I'm sure you'll get lots of use out of them. 'Cept the utility companies won't be too happy about them. They'ld rather you ran an extension cord, and would probably supply one for free.

There are upsides and downsides to both land and on the water. On the water every so many years it has to come out and have hull maintenance done. On land this does not exist. Around here for a very modest donation they will pump waste water tanks. On land it is more costly or you are dealing with either an outhouse or a composting toilet and from what I have heard they are pretty grim. I think what you really need to sit down and figure out how you are going to solve all the simple needs on land and water and work from there.

gaw wrote:
I also picked out a song for you to listen to while spending long summer days floating and drinking on the bay.

Here's another!